


Visions of Bodie and Doyle: the art of 'showing' not 'telling'.

by shooting2kill



Category: The Professionals
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-22
Updated: 2016-01-22
Packaged: 2018-05-14 13:12:18
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,007
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5745145
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shooting2kill/pseuds/shooting2kill





	Visions of Bodie and Doyle: the art of 'showing' not 'telling'.

| _Bodie said nothing. He risked a quick glance at Doyle, saw that he was turned slightly towards the driver’s seat, studying the dashboard - if he was seeing anything... “Ray. There’s nothing to worry about. Honestly -” “We’ll still be partners. Friends. I know. ‘s gonna be fine. I’m not worried. And you don’t have to work so hard to include me, and - You wanna be on your own. ‘s natural.” ..I’ve seen enough of him...of the two of you... Well, I’ve seen enough to know that he’ll make you happy. The way he looks at you. It’s obvious. I see him sometimes ... He’s noticed the way your hair curls just after it’s been washed. The way the smell of you changes as the day goes on. Hasn’t he? Everything. And he tells you. Can’t help himself. Though it’s obvious, anyway, that he thinks about you all the time. “And when he tells you ... he watches you so carefully. Doesn’t he? D’you know why? D’you know what he’s storing away for the daytime? He’s in love with the way every line of your face softens, and your mouth falls open like your lungs need more than air, and your eyes seem to be seeing ... something else. And the way you don’t even know that it’s happening. You think you’re just smiling. Sometimes I see him look at you, and I know ... he’s remembering. “It doesn’t frighten him, you see. For him it’s ... it’s wonderful. He wants it. He likes feeling his heart ... turn over. Doesn’t frighten him. Not at all...[ Freezing:Helen Raven](http://www.kelper.co.uk/helenraven/freezing.html)_  
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| _The interior was dimly lit and crowded. The music was louder than Bodie liked, currently Love Letters in the Sand. He'd never cared for Pat Boone. He scanned hopefully for Doyle and located him in the midst of a group of about a dozen people, all familiar except for a girl who must be the new blonde...... Except he discovered that he only wanted to look at Doyle....Same ugly mug, flattered by the dim, artful lighting into brief momentary illusions of strange beauty.... Doyle in a brown shirt, open at the neck, and those dull green moleskins. Doyle laughing, swigging back something in a half-pint glass. Doyle who had slept with him the night before he left for Belfast, the way they did occasionally. Never anything serious, of course, but.... Doyle with whom he had exchanged a totally unpremeditated kiss of farewell the next morning. Doyle who had nagged at his thoughts continually, especially at night. The memory of that lean body pressed against him, strong arms holding him close, mouth yielding yet demanding in that first ever kiss.[ A Portrait of My Love: The Hag](http://archiveofourown.org/works/107395)_  
| _"...This doesn't make sense. You still haven't said why. Why you won't go without me ... Don't tell me -- you've fallen madly in love with me, right?" Bodie felt a sense of shock at the words, knowing that was little more than the truth but unable to admit it, to himself even less than to Doyle. He covered quickly. "Listen, mate, it's like the ol' man's bum leg. It's a right pain to him sometimes, but he'd sooner hang on to it, just the same." Doyle stared at him, wondering if Bodie realized what he'd just said and what it implied. Bodie cleared his throat uncomfortably. "Well, it doesn't mean he's in love with his bloody leg, does it?" he repaired falteringly, half-way realizing the import of the bald statement, "He's just used to havin' it..." He shut up abruptly before he dug himself in any deeper....[ Time Out:Past Tense:Pamela Rose ](http://www.thecircuitarchive.com/tca/archive/7/timeout.html)_  
| _Doyle was just about to turn the page when a familiar spiky hand looped around some of the titles and curving onto the opposite leaf dragged his gaze back. Peering more closely, he realised they were notes and a small fond smile twitched his lips. Reading through them, hearing Bodie’s cheery, teasing tones in his ears, Doyle slowly began to realise just how much he’d missed his partner in the last few weeks. He missed being with Bodie and missed joking with him and being privy to the strange telepathic connection that they shared, but that was part of the problem, though wasn’t it? He was a mess – dangerous. Bodie had nearly died because of him and it wasn’t the first time......Like a drowning man, he had been concentrating too much on just trying to stay afloat that he’d missed the lifeboat and had been lost at sea. Eventually, trying to swim in the crashing waves had just become too hard and like the drowning victim he’d let go and let himself go under. But Bodie hadn’t let him go. The tiny thought burned like a single star in the darkness....Bodie – he couldn’t leave Bodie. Bodie, part of the reason that he had wanted to die because he thought he deserved better. The pain of being near him had become too much, but Doyle needed that pain because it proved he could feel and be human. Bodie had always made him feel human.....Bodie had always been there to shake him out of it. He was a mess and Bodie still wanted him. Bodie still thought there was something worth saving somewhere in his sorry hide.[ The Sun Will Still Rise in the East:Agent_Talis ](http://archiveofourown.org/works/5102270)_  
| _"That wasn't what I was asking. Christ, Bodie, I wouldn't mind as much if you had slept around. Not if you could look me in the eye and tell you'd always been a hundred percent sure I wasn't a traitor....." "Look, it wasn't easy -- I never wanted to believe -- but Cowley showed me the evidence. I wanted to believe in you -- even did my own investigation, trying to find something that would clear your name. But in the end -" He looked away, horrified to hear his voice crack a little. "In the end it was easier to believe the accusations were true. Because if you weren't a traitor, you were probably dead." "Jesus, Bodie," Doyle said in a low voice, etched with pain. Bodie didn't dare look up at him, because he knew that if he did, then he'd crack.....[ The Long Game:Garonne](http://archiveofourown.org/works/4969114)_  
| _It's after midnight and he can still hear revellers shouting on the streets outside, and the intermittent pop of a stray firework. His discontent can't have anything to do with the job, either. Cowley was a bit put out, at first, but they'd managed to track down Wright and retrieve the stolen guns. Then the old man smiled, said the operation could be considered keel there, too. Bodie himself was patched up, and healing nicely, no nerve damage in his hands. He'd had to talk to Dr. Ross of course, but she'd failed to ferret out any evidence of psychological trauma. Which made sense, since there was nothing in his subconscious to trouble him anymore now that his ghosts had all been tucked neatly back where they belonged. Doyle still hadn't got his missing memories back, but otherwise the doctors said his mental faculties were in as good a shape as ever. Doyle. Bodie pauses, disturbed. Doyle is fine. The partnership is fine. Everything is the same as it's always been... Except that Bodie can't forget the feel of Doyle's coarse springy curls against his cheek, the rough texture of his skin, the scent of him and the warm weight of his body.....[ Present Company:Rebelcat ](http://rebelcat4.tripod.com/pros/fic-presentcompany.html)_  
| _I want us to work together, I want us to go to his flat together. I want Ray cooking and me doing the dishes afterwards. I want us to fight over the progamme on the telly or beat him playing cards. I want Ray to shout at me for getting us behind in the schedule, every morning. I want to fall asleep knowing that this will be our bed for at least 1 more day. I want him to edge me on during training, forcing me to go that last mile that'll make me fit. I want to teach him not to pull his punches, least of all with me. I want us squabbling when it's time to do the laundry. I want us going on the shooting range, comparing scores. I want us to be apart only to come together again. I want us to tear into each other. I want us to make up. I want us to be together. I want him. I want him to want me, too. It's not what he wants though ...[ Altruism:Marrie ](http://hatstand.slashcity.net/marrie/altruism.html)_  
| _(He) dropped his head back...and closed his eyes....Oh, he hated this – well, no. That wasn't the right word, because it was worth the ache and the strain of hiding his feelings to have Bodie in his life, to horde these private, unguarded moments his partner gave to no-one else. Even more precious and painful were the times when Bodie lost the “matey” mask and his affection for Doyle showed through. Bodie loved him, Doyle knew that. It just wasn't the same way Doyle loved him. Bodie loved him as a friend and best mate, and that would have to be enough. Doyle would stay silent the rest of his days if that was what it took to keep Bodie.... No, he didn't hate this at all. But he was tired...[ This Christmastide:jessebee](http://archiveofourown.org/works/5552048?view_adult=true)_  
|  _"What the hell's wrong with you?" Pain was raw in his voice. "Are you that bloody naive or just plain daft? Why won't you see the risk, at least admit it's there? And pack him in." "No." "My God, has he got you hooked that much? I don't believe it." "Believe what you want, I'm not discussing..." "Yes, you are....What do you need from him, damn it?" he shouted. "What the hell can he do for you that I can't?" Shock jolted through Doyle, slackening his jaw and widening his eyes. Bodie's face mirrored the reaction as he, too, realized what he had said... "Well?" Bodie demanded, a kind of defiance covering his astonishment. "Tell me." Doyle could not answer immediately. Mentally reeling from that one sentence, his first impulse was to admit the set-up. But Cowley had stressed that nobody, Bodie included, should know. But if he didn't spill the beans, Bodie would assume....[ Of Tethered Goats and Tigers:Tarot ](http://hatstand.slashcity.net/tarot/goats1.html)_  
| _... it was just a bullet, even if it had spun a path of fire through him, left the flames licking their way into his blood. Good job it hadn't been a dum-dum, mind, that would've made a hell of a mess. Maybe Doyle was right, maybe dum-dum's weren't such a good idea. The Yanks used them all the time, mind, so did estate managers and... yeah, he bet Paul Cougan'd had his firearms certificate beefed up with it, to keep all those nasty deer at bay... Bastard. They'd get him one of these days. He'd get him one of these days, for what he'd nearly done to Doyle. Yeah, Doyle'd come, like a bullet straight through Bodie's heart, he'd come running any minute now, roaring Bodie's name... Bodie froze, eyes wide, staring at the rivets on the black iron in front of him. Where had that come from? Doyle in his heart? Doyle wasn't anywhere near his heart, Doyle was a mate, he was... He was coming now for Bodie, Bodie heard his shout in the distance, just as he'd expected, coming to find Bodie and to... to what? Well, they always found each other, didn't they, that was what they did. It was just... expected. Natural.[ Bullets:Slantedlight](http://archiveofourown.org/works/3360074)_  
| _It’s almost like the old days, he thinks painfully....the two of them in their own private world, chatting easily and comfortably, and with a shared knowledge.... “Anyway, what about you?” Doyle asks, after making Bodie laugh with a story about a flak jacket, a sniffer dog and an unfortunate MP. “You haven’t done too badly either, have you?” “Yeah, business is steady, can’t complain. I’m hoping to set up a shooting range soon, too. We get a lot of ex-army boys, so it should be popular.” “Trust you,” says Doyle, shaking his head. “So you can spend your day shooting targets and still call it work.” “Yeah,” agrees Bodie happily. “That’s the plan. If only I could palm the paperwork off on someone, I’d be laughing,” he grins. “And how’s the family?” Doyle forces himself to ask.... Bodie hesitates momentarily. “Chrissie and I divorced,” he says. “Couple of years ago.” Doyle’s heart skips a beat. “Shit, I’m sorry,” he says. And he is, sort of. She’d been funny and sporty, very pretty... not a bad match for Bodie. Never mind the sacrifices he made for her. Bodie shrugs. “It was for the best... she’s re-married now.” “And your daughter?” asks Doyle, somehow managing to keep his voice level.... “Daughters. Got two. Ellie’s fourteen now, and Katie’s eleven,” he says. Doyle tries to ignore the mix of emotions rocketing through him... Bodie’s divorced... With two kids...[ The Meeting:Angelci5 ](http://archiveofourown.org/works/586705?view_adult=true)_  
|  _Doyle lay awake, staring into the darkness. Tina was fast asleep, her hair spilling over his shoulder and tickling his chest. Absently, he pushed it away. She mumbled something in her sleep and pulled the covers closer under her chin. There was something wrong. Okay, Tina wasn't Miss World but she was appealing enough. So why had he kept expecting to find hard muscle instead of soft curves? Why had he been wanting to bury his fingers in short, black hair....? And why would Tina's moans and tangled phrases of pleasure have been so much more satisfying if they'd been a couple of octaves deeper and spoken with a Birkenhead accent? He sighed with frustration. It was perfectly understandable, if you approached it logically. His most recent sexual experience had been with Bodie and it was so unusual and so recent that, of course, it had kind of imprinted itself on his consciousness. Probably there was always this comparison going on in the back of his mind and he just didn't notice it. Fancying Bodie would be more trouble than it was worth, so he'd just have to prove to himself that everything was perfectly logical, understandable and normal. Really.[ Not in Love:Derry ](http://www.thecircuitarchive.com/tca/archive/2/notin.html)_  
|  _Doyle was quiet, waiting for him to say something. But he didn't know what to say. "Beautiful." "Yeh, yeh. Like looking in a mirror." There was a sharpness to Doyle's voice, but looking again at the picture softened its cutting edge. It was a charcoal, and the lines were rough and strong. And anybody who knew him would recognise the subject was Bodie himself. Nude..... It really was beautiful. It made him look beautiful. Not young; it was him, now, looking better than he had this morning.It had been sketched out of memory, he would have guessed. The eyebrows were sketched in to give the face an amused expression that somehow didn't seem out of place even though there wasn't anything in the picture to look amused about. Maybe he'd been having a good thought, and Ray had caught it....Definitely the face of a creampuff. And the body of a man who ate them. But strong. Sure. There was no trace of mockery in the image. Only love, humour, and the keen observation of someone who'd spent too many hours looking at him to be taken in by any of it. He cleared his throat, which had gone tight. "Thanks."[ Zeno's Paradox:Miriam Heddy ](http://www.thecircuitarchive.com/tca/archive/9/zenosparadox.html)_  
| _Doyle had spoken the verboten word. Love. Not in his dictionary. As Bodie was so fond of saying, not in his book at all To have Doyle, loving him………wanting to hold him forever. Owning him, tying him down, making him stay in the one place...It filled him up, spilling over, the thought of Doyle loving him. But it emptied him, ebbing him away, the thought of Doyle when the disillusionment set in, when the dissatisfaction crowded all the love out...And it never even occurred to him to wonder at the way he looked at Doyle, nor the way he risked his life for him, nor the way he already put Doyle first in everything... It never occurred to him at all, for then he would have to question that most intrinsic of things, his own self-identity. Only queers loved other men.....Only queers were sweet and soft and romantic with other men. A Summer's Outing:M Fae Glasgow_  
|  _Doyle's eyes didn't shift, but Bodie saw the attention turn to him. It was like watching metal catch the light. "Keep breathing." Bodie kept his voice soft, hoping to convey to Doyle something like the reassurance Doyle's voice had held for him. "Can't be long now...." Doyle might be beyond speech, but he didn't need words to reply.....(His) eyes softened. The look held between them, no words necessary. Whatever it took, no matter how long the rdeal lasted, this much was solid. The connection between them was clean and clear. Steadfast, they waited together. Bodie heard the siren first..... Hang About: Irene (Proslib)_  
| _“We couldn’t raise you on the R/T.” “Wha—?...." “I came to find you.” Bodie had followed him, was close...There was something in his voice that held Doyle still. (*Yeah, I saw you through the window, lying on the floor. Thought it was a bloody strange place to have a kip. Spilled the milk, too. Very messy*.) “I killed him,” Doyle said. “Fought him off.” “Brian will be pleased.” ...Bodie’s voice was back to normal. They could bury it, as they always did. Make a joke, shrug it off, do something. He reached out, and when Bodie flinched, he knew he’d been right. He took Bodie’s hand in his, held it as he never had before. “It wasn’t me on the ground this time.” For a long moment, Bodie didn’t move....“You missed.” “Recognised—” But he could say no more. Disaster had been averted by the slimmest of margins—a flicker of recognition and muscle memory. “First thing they taught us—don’t shoot your partner.”[ No Stranger:PFL](http://archiveofourown.org/works/5259470)_


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